HOLIDAY MUSIC

The Victorian Christmas Maestro

By Shannon WoodlandThe 700 Club

CBN.com 
Beckon back to the days of old. Silent films are still
a would-be movie director's fantasy. Radio, well, that is yet
to be invented. And let's not even mention television. It's hard
to believe that only a hundred years ago people had to entertain
themselves.

JOHN DOAN: A lot of times people would have
zithers or guitars or banjos.

SHANNON WOODLAND: What's a zither?

JOHN DOAN: The most famous of the zithers is
the autoharp, an American invention, and this one is from 1882.

SHANNON WOODLAND (reporting): John Doan is more
than a musician. He's an entertainer, a historian, and a storyteller.

JOHN DOAN: I've found so many interesting artifacts
from this time that have a certain charm to them, and they all
sort of tell a story about who we were.

(John plays "Hark the Herald Angels Sing" on the crankorgan.) This was one
subtle way that it started to creep in, mechanical entertainment.

SHANNON WOODLAND: Except for the person who
cranked because they were getting the aerobic workout!

SHANNON WOODLAND (reporting): John Doan is one
of those accomplished musicians who makes music look so simple
that even I wanted to learn. That's why he does what he does.

JOHN DOAN: This was the age of invention, and
so there were all sorts of things created.

SHANNON WOODLAND: How many instruments do you
play?

JOHN DOAN: Oh, these were something where anyone
in the household could play.

SHANNON WOODLAND: I don't know about me, but
you made it look easy.

JOHN DOAN: I'll play the very first American
carol that gained widespread acceptance, "It Came upon a Midnight
Clear".

SHANNON WOODLAND (reporting): John has never
been one to keep all these instruments to himself. About 16 years
ago, he began touring his Victorian Christmas program around the
country, and it even aired on PBS in Portland, Oregon. John's
album, Wrapped in White: Visions of Christmas Past is sure
to strike a chord with many people's memories.

SHANNON WOODLAND: (after John plays "Go Tell
It On The Mountain" on the banjo) What is it about music?

JOHN DOAN: It's something beyond words. It's
nonverbal. It parodies our emotions. In that piece, 'Go tell it
on the Mountain,' is jubilation, it's celebration. Go tell it
on the mountain that Jesus Christ is born!

So many people have instruments in their attic from grandma,
and that's a part of their heritage. They should pull them out
and even try to play something on them.